Former OSU president Edward Jennings dies at age 82

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) - Ohio State President Michael Drake is remembering former OSU president Edward Jennings, who has died at 82.

Drake says Jennings guided the university through a time of great change including economic challenges.

The Minneapolis native died Saturday at a hospital in Tampa, Florida. He was Ohio State’s president from 1981 through 1990.

Jennings made headlines in November 1987 when he fired football coach Earl Bruce days before the annual big game with Michigan, shocking the Ohio State community. OSU later settled a lawsuit with Bruce for $471,000.

After leaving the presidency, Jennings continued as a finance professor at OSU until his 2002 retirement. He later served as interim president for a few months that same year.

A memorial service will be held in September in Bradenton, Florida.